I write to express concern over Rep. Collins Peterson's inconsistent support of a status quo farm bill. Sen. Kent Conrad and Rep. Earl Pomeroy are asked to take note as well. One would hope, and expect, that representatives from this part of the country would craft a new and improved farm bill that provides a true safety net for family farmers.
I find it absurd that under the current farm bill, taxes I pay could be transferred to those with annual incomes over $2.5 million. Out of the 1.3 million farms nationwide that receive subsidies, one million of them get $5,000 or less. Meanwhile, a very limited number of big farms get hundreds of thousands or even millions of taxpayer dollars. Have Peterson, Conrad and Pomeroy heard the concerns of small and moderate-sized farmers and struggling rural communities? Current commodity programs need to be more equitable; better and alternative kinds of support for farmers need to be in place; investments to assist rural entrepreneurs and promote small business development are needed now.
And to make matters even worse, totally missing from the proposed farm bill is any improvement of the nutrition title and means to reduce hunger here in the United States. Too often in this great country, retired farm families must choose between rent, medicine and food. They simply can't afford to have all three. This is not acceptable. Please go back to the drawing board and draft a
